Bleak Future

A Brother's Despair

NOTE: THE FOLLOWING IMAGE IS COPYRIGHT TO ITS ORIGINAL OWNER

Chapter 6: A Brother's Despair

Raphael grips the beer bottle hard as he growls to himself:

"By the time I came to my senses, it was like the apocalypse had already happened...The lair was destroyed and..."

"Go on," Mikey shuddered.

"Most of the gang was killed in that explosion...Casey...April...The Mutanimals...Karai...your Ice Cream Kitty and....and Chompy" Raphael grunted, trying to stay strong.

Mikey miserably held his big brother, doing his best to comfort him since he knows how much Chompy meant to him.

Raphael sadly pets Mikey's head and went on:

"That's when I saw Donnie and...he was like if hell chewed him and spit him back out; he was bleeding and lost most of his limbs"

"It was then Dr.Rockwell came in and saw what happened as he was running late to the meeting with us which was a miracle of luck for him...He and Splinter grabbed Donnie and had to escape while I was searching frantically for Leo"

"Is he alright?" Mikey alarmingly asked.

"He was cradling Karai's body, weeping for her as if she was his wife, even though she was technically our sister..." Raphael grunted, always finding Leo's crush on Karai weird and uncomfortable, given the fact they're family together.

"Gideon made his escape in the sewers and I called out for Leo to help us but instead, he just looked at me with those cold glaring eyes and after putting Karai down, he just went after Gideon and abandoned us again..."

Mikey couldn't believe what he was hearing...this wasn't the Leonardo he grew to love and respect! The Leo he knew would never abandon his family or lose himself to revenge; Leonardo was the strongest ninja in the team and yet it seems that without Michelangelo, like everyone else, Leo fell into a void of darkness that he cannot get out of.

"The Leo I knew would never..." Mikey begins to speak.

"He's a changed turtle since you were gone" Raphael gloomily pointed out. "We have changed for the worst without you"

Suddenly they heard a noise as Raphael grabs his shotgun, pulls Mikey close to him and aims at whoever has entered.

"Am I gonna be greeted with your shotgun pointing at me all the time?"

The two saw Donatello back and unharmed having escaped from the drones that he led away from his brothers.

"You could've knocked," Mikey pointed out.

"So what did I miss?" Donnie sat down on the couch.

"I told Mikey what happened the night Gideon destroyed our home and half the city" Raphael sighs.

"Oh..." Donnie slowly nodded as he knew it was bound to be explained sooner or later.

"Guys, please tell me what happened to Leonardo!" Mikey pleaded for the last time. "Considering Gideon is still out there, ruling most of New York City and you guys here in this wasteland, surely Leo must be alive or..."

"Mikey" Donnie started.

"I'll tell him," Raphael nodded.

"Are you sure that you-?" The robotic turtle awkwardly pressed on.

"We have to tell him!" Raphael impatiently snapped. "Besides, Gideon isn't the only thing we have to protect Mikey from"

"What are you dudes talking about?" Mikey quizzed.